. One complaint would be that the louche isn't that impressive..... In hindsight, it would have been better to let them try an absinthe with a nice, slow louche.

Star anise. It will make for a very quick and thick louche. One of Hartsmar's criticisms is that they use too much; and that it hides some of Valkaria's finer complexities.

I have too felt that absinthe can feel different compared to other spirits while being digested, but I haven't found that feeling unpleasant

Absinthe is an apéritif It will get those digestive juices going. I can't drink it, or anything else actually, on a totally empty stomach.

I've also noted that absinthe in general seem to taste better as you get closer to the bottom of the bottle. ..... Am I just imagining this or are there any reasons I experience the improvement?

Many have noticed this and commented on it. Definitely not your imagination. As to why that is so, that is something still under investigation, perhaps due to oxidation or the more volatile elements evaporating.

What she said! They have made the process easy, with all kinds of instructions, and advice.

I do not doubt this, I just want to be able to place both the brands and the different aromas and flavors into a context I feel confident talking about. Maybe I just have a different perspective on reviews because I mostly read and study reviews of literature, and maybe this perspective is not applicable on reviews of drinks and foods etc, but when you review books knowledge is really important. For example: when you compare a work of one author to that of another you place that author into a literary tradition and shape the view of that author in the eyes of the contemporary and future literary world. Even though your influence may be small it is still there. Reviews are very important, especially when written by someone who is considered an authority on literature.

Now, absinthe is still a spirit shrouded in mystery to most people. There are not that many brands of absinthe as compared to other spirits. There are not that many bottles of absinthe in the world either. Not many people really know what it is. There are very few authorities on absinthe. I'm not sure if I am right, but The Wormwood Society and La Fee Verte seem to be the two largest "publications" on absinthe there is. What this means is that each review of a brand of absinthe will be much more important than a review normally would be in a more popular field. So you do want to know what you talk about when you contribute, however small your influence might be.

Star anise. It will make for a very quick and thick louche. One of Hartsmar's criticisms is that they use too much; and that it hides some of Valkaria's finer complexities.

Ah, I think I've read about star anise having that effect on louching somewhere. I am not able to discern between different flavors yet, though.

Absinthe is an apéritif It will get those digestive juices going. I can't drink it, or anything else actually, on a totally empty stomach.

Many have noticed this and commented on it. Definitely not your imagination. As to why that is so, that is something still under investigation, perhaps due to oxidation or the more volatile elements evaporating.

I've had a few glasses of this. For me, its star anise is masking some of the elements slightly.
It is a quality absinthe however, with a lot of potential. Many might enjoy it. If they tweak it a bit to pull the star anise down, it could be really great. Hopefully as this is so new, they will hear the feedback and modify the recipe!

I was really pleased with this one. It's clear they've tried a number of good absinthes from a few other producers (instead of ignoring the competition as it seems like some new producers do). It's pretty close to excellent.

I was really pleased with this one. It's clear they've tried a number of good absinthes from a few other producers (instead of ignoring the competition as it seems like some new producers do). [...]

The producers has now stated that this is the case in a podcast from and with the two guys (Göran Bäuerle and Henrik Larsson). They mentioned at least Duplais.

The podcast is only in swedish though. But shortly they also talked about how they started their company, purchasing a former church/chapel, rebuilding it to a working (and legal) destillery, dealing with bureaucracy, their own concept behind the brand Valkyria Absinthe and some of the (positive) response.

Top five brands so far:Jade (PF) 1901 - this is a winner but also quite an expensive brand (It can be well diluted though) | Grön Opal - Swedens most excellent and newest absinthe | Libertine 72 - for the low price and because it can also be diluted really well | Duplais Balance - very tasty indeed and for quite some time my favourite | Mansinthe - which I find a little bit more "spicy" than others, but with no downsides

Be prepared for a special moment when WOLF celebrate when founding
member Niklas Stålvind final becomes an adult! 40 year in the service of
METAL!!!!

This special day we also release our official
Absinthe made by the amazing guy´s at Sankta Annas Distillery who just
won the Masters Awards at The Spirits Business competition The Absinthe
Masters for both their products "Valkyria Absinthe and "Midvinterblot
2012".
Now it´s time for the WOLF Absinthe to conquer the world!

So joint us on June 1st in Örebro, Sweden where WOLF first were formed for a very special evening!!

I suppose this new absinthe from Sankta Annas Distillery could be the one that has been stored in oak barrel(s). They wrote about that on their Facebook page (in Swedish) on February 11.

Experiences, anyone, from absinthe stored in oak, or any other (wooden), barrels?

Edited by SethP, 20 March 2013 - 04:38 PM.

Top five brands so far:Jade (PF) 1901 - this is a winner but also quite an expensive brand (It can be well diluted though) | Grön Opal - Swedens most excellent and newest absinthe | Libertine 72 - for the low price and because it can also be diluted really well | Duplais Balance - very tasty indeed and for quite some time my favourite | Mansinthe - which I find a little bit more "spicy" than others, but with no downsides

OK, For what it's worth, I got another bottle of Valkyria, this being the most recent batch. I wasn't too impressed, as it was decent, but not as good as I'd expected. The star anise was a bit too strong still, but there was also a smoky edge that put me off a bit. I tried it again about a week after opening, and felt the same way. Well, it's over a month later, and it's changed dramatically. The green anise is more present in the aroma and flavor, and the smokiness is gone. I actually am liking it quite a bit. Now, if they'd only dial down the star anise, they'd REALLY have something.